Earn your J.D. and your M.S. in Criminal Justice with 15-18 fewer credits than would be required to earn the two degrees independently.

This dual-degree option with the UB School of Law is an opportunity to develop skills for managerial and legal positions in federal, state and local criminal justice agencies. You can earn both degrees concurrently by completing all required courses over a three- to four-year period.

How it works:

You'll complete a minimum of 78 credits in the law school and a minimum of 30-33 credits in the M.S. program.

The UB School of Law recognizes 9 credits of the criminal justice requirements as transferable to its program (or 6 credits if the degrees are not completed within the same academic year), and the the College of Public Affairs reciprocally allows the transfer of up to 9 credits of law school courses to satisfy coursework requirements in the M.S. program.

You'll begin master’s program work during the summer preceding enrollment in the law school or during the summer after finishing the first year of law school, but you can't take courses within the master’s program during the fall and spring semesters of the first year of law school.

Applying and admission:

Apply to and meet the admission standards of both the School of Law and the Master of Science in Criminal Justice program separately:

You can apply to the dual-degree program after having enrolled in either the J.D. or the M.S. program; however, to obtain the full benefit of credit sharing, criminal justice students should enter the law school program no later than after the completion of 15 credits in the M.S. program.

For more information, see the Juris Doctor/Master of Science in Criminal Justice (J.D./M.S.) section in the UB Graduate Catalog.